It was very appropriate in the middle of a pandemic for Metronomy to open up their recent Manchester date with the delightful pop smash ‘Love Factory‘ – a love song set in a post-apocalyptic world where its inhabitants have all died off. Relevant yet grim subject matter sure, but the lovely pink glow of the lights shine bright on the bodies on stage in glorious fashion, as we catch our first glimpse of the quintet. Towards its end, main man Joseph Mount moves off the microphone and steps to the side, becoming lost in the dark of the side stage.
The last time we saw Metronomy at the Academy, they were coming off the back of their latest release, ‘Metronomy Forever‘. Once again we find ourselves in the venue, celebrating with the band as they put out a new release, the wonderful ‘Small World‘. Though it’s not wall to wall ‘Small World‘ tonight, rather the new record is expertly peppered throughout the set. A mega bass chug and terrace fan sing along kicks off the intro for ‘The Bay‘, a surprisingly early outing for the big hitter from ‘The English Riviera‘, the outfit clearly keen to keep the crowd on their toes. The little “la la la” accompaniments from the rest of the band as Mount sings the refrain that “This isn’t Paris…” are a lovely addition.
A revved up ‘Corinne‘ is another welcome early surprise and we’re cooking with gas now! Bassist Olugbenga Adelekan moonlights as hype man, getting the crowd right into the clap along, bringing an enthusiasm to the performance that doesn’t dip once. Later on, his backing vocals on ‘The Light’ are a heavenly touch. The vocal of drummer Anna Prior is just as heavenly whenever she comes in and similarly, she doesn’t dip all night – later almost swimming a breast-stroke from her stool on ‘Reservoir‘ as she vibes along.
Prior becomes the centrepiece on ‘Everything Goes My Way‘ as the lights shine on just her and Mount takes another step back. She gives a wee salute and a thank you at its end and it’s a silky smooth operation from all involved. This lot have got it down, no question. The drummer is left to it with keys/synth men Oscar Cash and Michael Lovett on the dance-a-thon of ‘Boy Racers‘, as the lights blast and they “OI“, “HEY” and woop to the bouncy, hypnotic instrumental.
They’re very happy to be back in the “greatest city in the known Universe” we’re told, naturally followed by one of our songs of 2021, ‘It’s Good to be Back‘, a fitting nod of the head to Greater Manchester royalty, Messrs Sumner and Marr. As they build into the heart-swelling ‘Things Will Be Fine‘ – sounding so perfect in the live setting, with a bit more oomph behind it – my Girlfriend lets me know she’s off to the loo as it’s “a boring one” and I’m left to figure out how to get out of the mortgage and who gets custody of the dog…
“So how’s it been, Manchester?” Asks Mount, remarking how nice it is being back. “Trust me – I didn’t say that in Liverpool…” He jokes, commenting on rivalries between the two. The stand up routine continues as he asks if Manchester is still the city of the blues (!) Before he gets his head kicked in, he lets us know he does of course mean the 12 bar blues and this leads into a country twanging, yee-hawing nostalgic (even more so!) rendition of ‘Salted Caramel Ice Cream‘. A big rock and roll finish concludes one of their brightest numbers, as it deserves, and the humour of it all showcases what makes Metronomy so charming.
Cousin Oscar Cash is asked by Joe if he did his laundry today and if he’d like to sing about it. Oscar of course takes on this opportunity, suddenly belting it out in an operatic style to Mount and his guitar, who serenades him from one knee. It’s all a great bait and switch that leads into ‘The Look‘ and of course, It’s a big favourite amongst the Manchester crowd. Lovett hops up and does some cymbal tapping as Prior kicks off and the terrace chanting from the crowd begins again.
After a run through of the more subdued ‘The Upsetter‘, it’s all kisses and goodbye waves, but it’s thankfully another swizz and they’re back on imminently for the big dance encore of ‘Old Skool‘ and ‘Love Letters‘, both a total vibe to keep the night alive and the energy right up, the latter a total barrage of disco joy.
The highlight of the night however comes from the wonk-pop triumph of ‘You Could Easily Have Me‘, opener from their 2006 debut ‘Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe)‘. Mount rips it on the guitar with a gnarly riff as the drums explode and the keys go haywire, elevating an early one into a metal and punk style affair, everyone on stage getting lost in the nuts rendition before punters are hoofed into the street through a side door, not quite knowing what’s just hit them.
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